Top 10 Requests from the National Ag Risk Education Library

The National Ag Risk Education Library, http://www.agrisk.umn.edu/Main.htm is developed and maintained by the Center for Farm Financial Management in the Department of Applied Economics, College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences at the University of Minnesota. Links to the following top 10 requests from the National Ag Risk Education Library can be found online at http://www.cffm.umn.edu/farmmgt.asp

Managing Risk in Farming: Concepts, Research, and Analysis
Joy Harwood, Richard Heifner, Keith Coble, Janet Perry, and Agapi Somwaru, Market and Trade Economics Division Economic Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, March 1999, Media type: bulletin.

This report provides a rigorous, yet accessible, description of risk and risk management tools and strategies at the farm level. It also provides never-before-published data on farmers’ assessments of the risks they face, their use of alternative risk management strategies, and the changes they would make if faced with financial difficulty. It also compares price risk across crops and time periods, and provides detailed information on yield variability.

Developing a Marketing Plan
Stan Bevers, Mark Waller, Steve Amosson and Dean McCorkle, Texas Agricultural Extension Service, April 1998, Media type: fact sheet; curriculum (4 pages).

Developing a good marketing plan will help you identify and quantify costs, set price goals, determine potential price outlook, examine production and price risk, and develop a strategy for marketing your crop. This publication describes the importance of a written plan, the components of a marketing plan, and information on evaluating the plan.

FINPACK
Center for Farm Financial Management, University of Minnesota, February 1999, Media type: software.

FINPACK is a comprehensive financial planning and analysis system designed to help farmers and ranchers understand their financial situation and make informed decisions. FINPACK is not a record-keeping system. Instead, FINPACK makes it possible to effectively use farm records to make business analysis, cash flow planning, and long range planning decisions. Its ease of use combined with complete and meaningful results make it unique in the farm management field.

Risk Management for Agricultural Producers
Alan Banquet, Ruth Hambleton and Doug Jose, Risk Management Education, May 1998, Media type: presentation (92 pages).

This program is part of a campaign to improve the risk management skills of America farmers and ranchers. The urgent need for this campaign stems from many changes in producers’ business environment.

Managing Risk with Crop Insurance
William Edwards, Iowa State University, University Extension, January 1999, Media type: fact sheet (4 pages).

This publication describes Multi Peril Crop Insurance, Catastrophic Insurance, Group Risk Plan, Crop Revenue Insurance, and Supplemental Coverage.

AgRisk
Gary Schnitkey, Ohio State University, 1998, Media type: software.

AgRisk predicts the distribution of a farm’s gross revenue at harvest time under alternative pre-harvest risk management strategies that involve any combination of multiple peril crop insurance, crop revenue protection insurance, group risk plan insurance, price options and futures, and various pricing contracts offered by elevators and processors, including forward price and minimum price contracts.

Optimal Grain Marketing: Balancing Risks and Revenue
Kendell W. Keith, National Grain and Feed Association, April 1999, Media type: bulletin (38 pages).

This booklet is intended to introduce farmers of grains and oilseeds to a number of risk management topics and tools. Subjects covered include: (1) major crop insurance products; (2) common cash contracts (not all of which may be offered by local elevators); and (3) exchange futures and options.

Integrated Risk Management Education — “Train the Trainer” Sessions
Chris Mikesell, University of Minnesota, November 1998, Media type: curriculum.

Risk management has become a major issue for most producers. They are facing an agricultural economy that is radically different from that which existed just a few years ago, and current market prices are discouraging for most of the major commodities. Our goal is to equip and encourage you to deliver risk management education to producers.

Hedging with a Put Option
C. Anderson, J. Smith, D. McCorkle and D. O’Brien, Texas Agricultural Extension Service, June 1998, Media type: fact sheet; curriculum (4 pages).

Put options are a pricing tool with considerable flexibility for managing price risk. This publication discusses how put options work, how to use them, and some put option basics.

Crop Revenue Insurance
Don Hofstrand and William Edwards, Iowa State University, University Extension, January 1999, Media type: fact sheet (4 pages).

Revenue insurance guarantees certain levels of revenue rather than just production. It protects you from declines in both crop prices and yields. The guarantee is based on market prices and the actual yield on your farm.

Protein Premiums
Protein that was about average for hard red winter wheat this year, along with a generally better-than-average yield for spring wheat which may mean generally lower-than-average protein, should translate into a premium of 50 cents or better for 15% protein wheat. Protein premiums typically peak in the fall.